This invention relates to a method of preparing a meat-containing condiment on a commercial scale. More particularly, the invention concerns a spreadable glutamate-free condiment usable as such to prepare meat broths and/or to enhance the sapidity of food and dishes.
In the field of house gastronomy, and more generally in the catering field, there has always existed a demand for a simple, quick, and inexpensive method of preparing so-called meat-based "broths", or of intensifying the flavor of meat in food.
To fill this demand, the related prior art has provided condiments which range from the well-known soup cubes to soup preparations having a similar composition to the cubes and extracts of vegetable origin which are modified chemically to reproduce the meat taste synthetically.
The above products, while imparting the desired sapidity characteristics to soups prepared from them, contain ingredients which tend to be unbalanced from the nutritional standpoint and inferior from the dietetic one, such as sodium chloride (kitchen salt) and sodium glutamate which are usually provided in proportions higher than about 50% and 15% by weight, respectively.
In addition, condiments made in accordance with prior art methods include significant amounts, within the range of about 10 to 20%, of saturated fatty acids of animal origin which affect the nutritional value and digestibility of the broth produced.
Further adverse aspects of the condiments provided heretofore relate to a certain evenness in the taste of the broth, and of dishes prepared therewith, which evenness may result sometimes in the consumer growing accustomed to the peculiar taste imparted by such condiments.
The technical problem that underlies this invention is to provide a method of preparing a meat-containing condiment on a commercial scale, which can enhance the flavor and taste of broths and food cooked therewith, while containing balanced ingredients from the dietetic standpoint.